Station-indicator.



W. A. LARGE.

STATION INDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.19I5.

1,294,28QB Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

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STATIDN BNDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED mm: 5,1915.

Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM A. LARGE, OF TREDWAY, TEXAS.

STATION-INDICATOR.

which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in station indicators for railway coaches or the like, and the object of the invention is to simplify and improve the existing art by providing an apparatus of this class which shall be automatic and positive in operation, which is simple in construc tion and which may be easily and quickly set up in a railway coach of the ordinary construction.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a station indicator which, when the coach draws out from one station will indicate the next station at which the coach stops and which, when the said coach ap proaches to a close proximity the second station, will warn the passengers of the coach of the fact that the station will soon be reached to permit of passengers who intend to leave the coach at the said station hav ing sufficient time to gather their luggage, etc, without undue haste and consequent excitement.

With the above and other objects in view, the improvement resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts set forth in the following specification and falling within the scope of the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view through a coach illustrating my improvement in applied position,

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the same,

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view, illustrating the arrangement of partswhen the indicator is operated,

Fig. 4: is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through the indicator casing showing the arrangement of the flexible belt, the slats having the station names printed thereon being removed,

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view illustrating the arrangement of the slats upon the flexible belt and one of the sprocket Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

Application filed June 5, 1915. Serial No. 32,419.

chains engaged by one of the sprocket wheels,

Fig. 6 is a view of a portion of the track upon which the coach travels and showing the arrangement of the trip or contact members and their proximity to the stations.

The numeral 1, in the drawings, designates the rails of a track which are support ed on suitable ties 2, while the numerals 3 indicate the stations along the track. Arranged upon the ties 2 adjacent each of the stations 3 and disposed one to each side of said stations are trip members 4 the same being preferably in the form of U-shaped bails and two of the trip members 4 are arranged opposite each other upon the said ties 1, as aforementioned, and disposed at the opposite sides of each of the stations 3. This arrangement is essential for the reason that the trip members 4 will operate the station indicator mechanism, presently to be described, when the coach, also to be referred to, travels in either direction upon the track 1, and the idea of arranging two of the trip members 4: between each pair of stations will also be fully set forth.

The coach which travels upon the track 1 is indicated by the numeral 5 and has arranged therein, at one of its ends, to one of the sides of the doorway, my improved indicator. The indicator is suitably incased so that the same may be easily and quickly attached to the coach and the said casing, indicated by the numeral 6, has its outer face normally closed by a door 7, the said door being provided with a suitable sight opening which is normally closed by a transparent plate 8. The numerals 9 and 10 indicate shafts which are arranged transversely in the casing 6 adjacent the upper and lower portions thereof, the said shafts being journaled in suitable bearings 11-11, and each of the shafts has keyed or otherwise secured thereon a pair of spaced sprocket wheels 1212 and 1313 respectively. Trained around the sprocket wheels 12 arranged upon the shaft 9 and around the sprocket wheels 13 positioned upon the shaft 10 are endless sprocket chains 1414, and secured to said sprockets at the inner edges thereof is an endless flexible belt 15. This belt may be provided with slats bearing the names of stations which are passed by the coach in its travel or the said belt may have such names printed thereon. The name of each station is twice impressed upon the endless belt or canvas 15, and the said names or other in dicia are disposed one below the other, so that when the sprocket wheels are rotated (in a manner to be described) the name of the station will appear through the trans parent plate 8 and when the device is again operated, the name of the said station will again appear through the sight opening or transparent plate 8. The endless belt or canvas may have the double set of names of each station differently indicated, as for instance, when one of the stations is first arranged at the ight opening, the letters spelling the name of the same may be in black upon a white background, and when the second indication of the same station is brought to the sight opening, the letters spelling the same may be white and imprinted upon a black background, the idea being that the name first displayed is to warn the passengers of the coach the name of the station next approached, and when the train is within close proximity to the mentioned station, the second warning will appear. This warning is brought to view say when the coach is within a mile or so of the station, so that the passengers leaving the coach at the said station will have ample time to prepare to leave the coach when the station is reached, and further an audible alarm may be sounded in a manner which will also be presently described.

The shaft 10 extends a suitable distance from one of the sprocket wheels 13 and has keyed upon its end a toothed wheel 16. The shaft 10 may project beyond the toothed wheel 16 to provide a pivot for a bell crank 17, and the said bell crank 17 has one of its arms provided with a pivoted spring pressed dog 18, the said dog having two engaging faces, so that the same may be swung to rotate the wheel 16 and consequently the shaft 10 in one of two directions, in accordance with the direction of travel of the coach, and thus it will be noted that'the indicator will be actuated regardless of the direction of travel of the coach. The numeral 19 designates a rod which is pivotally connected to the second arm of the bell crank 17, and this rod may be provided with an offset finger 20 which when'the same is moved in one direction, will contact with anoperating arm or finger 21 which actuates a spring wound audible indicator, such as a bell 22. The rod 19 is provided with a flange 23, disposed near its end that passes through an opening 24 in the floor 25 of the coach, and surrounding the rod and exerting a tension between the flange 23 and the floor 25 is a helical spring 26 which moves the rod in an outward and inoperative direction.

of one of the sprocket wheels 16. By reference to Fig. 3 of the drawing it will be noted that the member 27 is 'L-shaped in side elevation and also that the pawl 18 is provided with two engaging faces either of which may be swung to engage between the teeth of the wheel 16, in accordance with the direction of travel of the belt.

The portion of the rod 19 which extends below the floor 25 of the car is formed with an additional sleeve 28, and the muneral 29 designates a helical spring which surrounds the sleeve above the collar and bears against the underface of the floor 25, and the springs 26 and 29 serve as a means for retaining the rod normally in one position. The numeral 30 designates a link which is pivotally connected with the endof the rod 19 and with the upper end of a second rod 31. The rod 31 is pivoted, as at 32, to a suitable brace 33 which is secured to the underface of the frame of the coach, and the end of the rod 31 is provided with a substantially frusto-conical or angular contact weighted member 341. The end 34 is adapted to be engaged by the trip or contact members 4 upon the ties of the track, and it will be noted that when the coach leaves a station the member 3 1 will be contacted and swung upon its pivot- 32 by the bail-shaped member 4 nearest the station just left by the coach but will swing the member as upon its pivot 32 and thus, through the medium of the link 30,'dralw the rod 19 in a downward direction swinging the bell crank lever 17 and causing the dog 18 to rotate the wheel 16 andv consequently the shaft 13. and the indicating ap V paratus. It will be noted that the flange 33, which is arranged only a slight distance above the floor 25 of the coach will limit the downward movement of the rod 19, s0 7 that the sprocket wheels can only be rotated a certain distance, the said distance being sufficient to bring the name of the station just passed away from the sight opening and the name of the approaching station adjacent the said sight opening. Thebell 22 will be sounded so that the attention of the passengers will be called to the name of the next station. When the coachis within a predetermined distance from the station which it approaches, the member 34: will be ac-tuated'by the bail-shaped member 1 nearest the said'station, and'the indicator will be again operated, as previously set forth.

From the above description, taken in (ma nection with the accompanying drawings, the simplicity of the device, as well as the advantages thereof will, it is thought, be perfectly apparent to those skilled in the art to which such invention appertains without further detailed description.

Having thus described the invention, What I claim is:

A station indicator comprising a casing provided in one face with a sight opening, a pair of vertically spaced horizontally disposed shafts mounted within said casing, sprockets carried by said shafts, a chain trained about said sprockets, an endless belt secured at one side edge to said chain, said belt being provided with indicia visible through said sight openings, and means for moving said belt step by step comprising a vertically movable rod, an angle lever pivoted upon the lowermost of said shafts and pivot-ally connected with said rod, a ratchet wheel secured on said lower shaft, a double ended pawl carried by said angle lever and engaging said rachet wheel, and a centering device secured within said casing and engaging said ratchet wheel, said double ended pawl being reversible whereby said belt may be moved in either direction, and said centering device permitting rotation of said ratchet wheel in either direction under the influence of said pawl while preventing accidental rotation thereof.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM A. LARGE.

Witnesses:

J. D. Corr, A. W. WINDHAM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

